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Monthly Archives: May 2013

Each week members of the Pacific Northwest Model Yacht Club toss boats they’ve worked on for months into lakes to race. On May 11, 2013, nine members met up at Lake Samish to catch some breeze in the sails of their T37s. The boats are 37 inches long, 5 feet tall from bottom of keel to top of mast, and weigh about 4 pounds.

Beyond racing, building the boat is a special part of the experience. Ron Knight, whose boat is named Seahorse, is making one with his grandson. Each man made his boat from a wooden kit created in Everson by Will Lesh at Tippecanoe Boats. They each have added their own personal touch my naming their boat or going as far to deck it out in UW Husky colors.

Lesh started building the kits seven years ago and has sold almost 2,000 so far. The community of model boat builders that own his particular design extends to 65 different countries.

As the men set up their boats and do last minute tweaking, Lesh starts a timer for them to start at a line in the lake. Chatter fills the air until the race starts, and all of them become silent, focusing on making tiny adjustments to the sails or rudder to catch the best line. Most of them have sailed life-size sailboats, but this hobby isn’t as risky, and they say it’s just as fun.

Members of the Pacific Northwest Model Yacht Club sail T37s on Lake Samish on May 11, 2013.

Will Lesh helps Jim Jenks fix the radio control connection on his boat. Members of the Pacific Northwest Model Yacht Club met to sail T37s on Lake Samish on May 11, 2013.

T37s sail on Lake Samish on May 11, 2013. The boats are 37 inches long.

Dan Darrow adjusts the rudder of his boat, named Persephone, before the races. Members of the Pacific Northwest Model Yacht Club sailed T37s on Lake Samish on May 11, 2013.

T37 model sailboats rest on Lake Samish on May 11, 2013 after a race.

Derek Storm sits on a paddle boat to sail his model sailboat during a race on Lake Samish on May 11, 2013.

Members of the Pacific Northwest Model Yacht Club focus on sailing their T37s in Lake Samish on May 11, 2013.

Last week I drove down to Seattle for a lecture on documentary photography, but unfortunately traffic hindered my progress and I was too late. I wanted to make the most of my trip, so I went to The School of Acrobatics and New Circus Arts where I took pictures of a tumbling class. I’m glad I knew about the place, otherwise I would have done a lot of driving with nothing to show for it. When in doubt, photograph!

Unicycles lie in wait for performers to balance on a single wheel at the School of Acrobatics and New Circus Arts in Seattle, Wash.

Hisam Goueli perfects his pike jumps on the trampoline on May 9, 2013 at the School of Acrobatics and New Circus Arts in Seattle, Wash.

Sybille Fleischmann practices trampoline tricks while Hisam Goueli watches on May 9, 2013 at the School of Acrobatics and New Circus Arts in Seattle, Wash.

Tom Hanna, an instructor at the School of Acrobatics and New Circus Arts in Seattle, Wash., looks over his Tumbling 1 class while they are conditioning on May 9, 2013.